New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated slew of developmental projects worth Rs 32,00 Crores during his two-day visit to Kerala. PM Modi flagged off Kerala's maiden Vande Bharat Express At Thiruvananthapuram Railway Station. The projects launched included the foundation stone for country`s first digital science park and the Water Metro at Kochi, revamp of three major railway stations, electrification of the Palakkad-Dindigul railway line and a few other developments to railway facilities in the state. He was accompanied by Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav, CM Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, and MP Shashi Tharoor. Rail electrification of the Dindigul-Palani-Palakkad section will also be dedicated by the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Modi appreciated the developments that Kerala is making in various sectors and said all what happens in the state will speed up the developments in the country. "The Kochi Water Metro is one which was built under the Make in India programme and congratulated the Cochin Shipyard Limited for building it and this is going to be a model for the rest of the country and I am very happy for it," said Modi.
He also said Kerala has been getting a huge increase in the allocation for railway development compared to the previous years. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan thanked Modi for favourably considering various projects for the state and for taking part in it.
After the event, Modi drove to the Thiruvananthapuram airport from where he left for Surat on a special IAF aircraft, ending his two-day visit to the state.